The Ghost Lion and the Magus warped into normal space, just in time to see the skyships turn and attack in. That they were still being attacked by the Machine Sphere's defenses, but it didn't matter. Here were the sky piarets, the actual culrpits.

Darken, Sachiel, Phoenix, Vertigo and Leiliel stood on the deck of the Ghost Lion, looking down. Below them, a squad of Metalhawk engaged their boosters, heading up to fight them.

"Long way down," Sachiel said, drawing his scythe-swords.

"We can make it," Darken said. "We have to. See that spot down there, where the surface has been blasted away? That's near to the control nexus. That's where we need to go."

"Darken," Vertigo said. "I can't fly, remember?"

"I thought about that," Darken said. "Vertigo, you're going to get us past the ships."

"How?"

Darken looked at her and without a trace of irony in his voice said: "You're going to be our bullet. You can use your chaos fire to punch through the hull. That should damage them enough to back off."

"That's the most insane thing I've ever heard," Vertigo said, drawing her sword. She took a moment to regard her reflection in it. "Still, I don't think I’d survive a freefall. So I guess we’ll go with that."

"All right then," Darken said. "Here's what we do. Sachiel--you and Leiliel go first. Fly under the Ghost Lion--the guns will protect you. Phoenix will go next, then me, with Vertigo."

Phoenix shot him a look, then remembered what he had said, and smiled with a peculiar sense of satisfaction.

Sachiel spread his biomechanical wings and took off, banking under the prow of the ship, Leiliel following in his slipstream. Darken pulled Phoenix to him and kissed her.

"Romanova," he said. "I love you."

"I love you too," she said. "Promise me something?"

"Yes?"

"See me on the ground," she said. She gestured to the skies, and her firebird aura surrounded her. It lit the skies above them, turning them dusk.

"It's our turn now," Darken said. He held Vertigo by the wrists and took off. Once they were under the ship, Darken began making wider and wider circles, spinning Vertigo around faster and faster, and building momentum.

"Okay," he yelled, tensing for release. "GO!"

Vertigo flew from his arms, toward one of the enemy ships. Her sword glowed, a flash of purple flame enveloped her and she ripped through the side of the ship like a violet comet.

Darken summoned his Dive Spear and dove toward his friends on the surface. The Metalhawks were engaging them as they fell to the Sphere below. Darken grit his teeth, pushed back the fear he felt, the memories of how ruthlessly Lanicrus had beat him and pushed on.

"You never told me?" Alecto said, incredulously. He mind was confused, nothing held together. Nothing was making any sense. "How could you, Father?"

"Alecto," Sandalphon said, inserting the key into the main control deck. Several secret relays were thrown, and the control panel thrummed to life. "I'm sorry--I don't have time to explain it right now."

A bolt of ice lightning streaked by his head. "Make the time."

"Seraphim," Sandalphon said, his voice thick with reluctance. "Restrain her."

"NO!" Alecto said. She sent freezing voltage through the Seraphim. Liandra, who had been watching this, waiting for her mind to clear from the blood frenzy, had decided now was the time to make her move.

"Father--either of you," Alecto demanded, her body crackling with energy. "You will tell me what I want to know, and you'll tell me now."

"That's enough," Liandra said. Her fairies gestures, and Liandra seemed to melt into the shadows for a second. Her manacles clattered to the ground, and she was free. So too were her fairies, free from the weakening iron of the bonds.

Two bolts of energy shattered Tigerhawk's manacles, and then Tralesta's. The three of them surrounded Alecto. Alecto, now angered beyond reason laughed, her eyes white-hot from the energy inside her.

"You can't be serious," she said. "I took you on before. I beat you. I'll do it again. I want the truth from them, can't you understand that?"

"There is more than truth at stake here," Liandra said.

Darken rolled to avoid the volley of energy blasts the Metalhawks threw his way, then used his wings to brake to a hover. He raised the Dive Spear and channeled his power though it. At the point of it, lighting surged. He held onto the side handle, bracing for the kick.

"ELITE SPARK!" Darken yelled, sending the bolt toward the Metalhawk. It struck the war machine, but did no damage. Instead it disrupted every erg of energy within it, causing it to sputter, malfunction, and finally to crash to the Sphere below.

Phoenix held the machine that had tried to attack her in the talons of her firebird aura. It was melting the outer shell of the Metalhawk, but not destroying it. Phoenix could sense something within the machine. Something . . .alive?

Leiliel had also sensed it. She used her feather darts to shatter the crystalline plates of another Metalhawk's armor and was shocked by what she found.

"Phoenix preserve us," she thought. "The Fallen."

Sachiel had seen it, but was helpless to stop it. The biomechanical wings had been ripped to pieces in a firefight. He grit his teeth and summoned his fire wings. They burned the wings of Yrouel off of him in a flash, and the three pair of fire wings shone in the dark sky.

Leiliel was yelling something to him, but he couldn't make it out. He slashed at the Metalhawk, who was trying to retreat. His scythe-swords shredded the machine's wings.

Before he knew what was happening, Leiliel was calling him on his Eagle Clasp. He tapped it with the butt of his sword.

"Don't kill them!" Leiliel cried. "The Fallen--the ones we captured before--are in those mahcines. We have to save them!"

"Why would they be there?" Darken said. Sachiel looked up. He was coming closer.

"Sandalphon hates Kirone and the Fallen," Sachiel added grimly. "He would do anything to break her. Turning her people into this is just the beginning, I'd wager."

The Morgana warped into normal space. Kirone stood up, watching the now 3-way battle from the bridge. "Blood of my ancestors," she breathed. "This is not what I expected."

She couldn't believe this. Angel ships were battling angel ships. There was a sky pirate ship--she thought she knew it, but she couldn't be sure. There were strange machines swarming over the surface of the Sphere. And down below, was that--?

She looked again. A smile crept over her lips.

Vertigo, she thought. On the side of the angels, so to speak. This will make the little drama I have concocted so much sweeter. I hope Darken's there, and his woman. I want them to see my triumph. No longer will anyone stand in the way of my destiny. This is my victory.

"Prepare my lander," she said. "Adamov, are you coming?"

Adamov turned to her. Kirone mouthed the word "Vertigo," and he was soon following behind her.

They were standing on the deck of the Morgana, looking down. Behind him, Adamov could hear Israfel, as well as see her--the glow from her suit was blinding.

"Vertigo is mine," Adamov said, cutting Kirone off before she could speak.

"As we agreed," Kirone said. "Israfel, I want you to clear me a path down to the surface. Oh, and you--" she gestured to the Seketha. "Take care of the ships for us now, won't you?"

"Done," the Seketha whispered.

In a heartbeat, every ship except for the Morgana and the Ghost Lion was stopped. They still hovered, but every other system, weapon, or forward propulsion was stopped.

"Now," Kirone said. "My victory awaits."

Israfel's wing struts extended. Jets of fire surged from them and she was borne aloft. Adamov extended his crystal wings and leapt off, the winds catching him. The crystals' vibrations sounded like screams.

Tigerhawk swung his sword at Alecto, but she was too fast. She kicked him hard in the hinge of his knee, forcing him down on his face. Tigerhawk felt pain explode through his body as Alecto sent her lighting through him. He could smell his fur singeing as she formed his face down on the cold metal of the control room. She held him by the bone crest on the back of his head and smashed his face against the metal. Once, twice, three, until he was unconscious. She slowly rose to her feet, just in time to meet Tralesta's boot in her face.

Alecto felt her nose crumple and blood trickle in warm rivulets from her nose. Tralesta followed that by kicking her hard in the back of the head, careful to strike her quickly, never giving her enough time to seize her and electrocute her.

Tralesta undid the yellow sash at her waist and flipped it over Alecto's head, pulling back as hard as she could. Alecto tried to bat her away with her wings, but Tralesta maneuvered between them, placing both feet into her back.

"STOP IT!" Alecto screeched, throat raw from the effort of breathing. She spasmed in desperation and a sphere of ice lighting enveloped her. A light patina of frost covered her and Tralesta, and the lighting surged through her. Alecto was immune, Tralesta was not. Tralesta felt the circuitry in her brain fusing, she felt her mind dying.

Alecto stopped, collapsed, and spat blood on the ground. She could barely breathe. Her chest heaved from the effort. She tried to push herself up, tried to focus, but it was so hard. She felt like something had slipped loose inside her, that she was out of control.

She focused, first on Gailion and Sandalphon, working on the Machine Nexus. She had to get there, but it seemed so far away. Slowly, she pulled herself to her feet. She walked over and unsteadily grabbed Tigerhawk's sword. She began shuffling towards them.

Oh Father, she thought. Why did you lie? Why was everything I believed wrong? And why won't you tell me why?

She single-mindedly made her way to where Gailion and Sandalphon were. Before she knew what was happening, she felt arms around her neck, shaking her, jostling the sword from her grasp. Then she felt herself rudely thrown to the floor. She looked up, her eyes focusing on Liandra.

Liandra very deliberately set herself into a ready stance. She extended a hand to Alecto, beckoned her closer. Liandra was not angry, she was focused.

Darken caught Vertigo as she punched through another ship. Her chaos fire dissipated just as he caught her.

"Enjoying yourself?" Darken asked.

"Well," she said. The air rushed so fast she had to shout. "It is rather fun."

"I'm glad you--"

Darken and Vertgio were separated by a screaming purple streak. Vertigo felt her stomach drop out--she was back in freefall. And--she blinked, trying to be sure--was that Adamov?

Darken felt like he had taken a cannon shell through the chest. The blonde-haired assailant, uppercut him away with inhuman strength. His eyes were black with hateful red pupils.

Darken flapped his wings, trying to hover. He blinked. Why do I feel so weak all of a sudden? Darken wondered.

"You have taken my love from me," Adamov said, pointing a bone-white finger at him. "For that, I promise you--death will be a long time coming!"

Phoenix saw it from a distance, but was knocked backwards by a bolt of power. She was sent head over heels in the air. That was familiar, she thought. That was . . .my power?

The blood-red armored form of Israfel bore down on her, her fire-wings extended. Phoenix drew her Talon charging it with her power. She flung it upwards. It glanced off of Israfel and returned to her.

No effect, she thought. Does this . . .thing . . . have my power?

"This isn't good," Lion said, manning the wheel. He turned the ship behind one of the angel ships now standing still. He had been trying to stay out of sight of the enemy, because as strong as the Ghost Lion was there was no way it could withstand continuous fire from all the Angel skyships.

They had been lucky and luckier still when all the ships had simply stopped. But now, this new ship was bearing down on them. It could move, and it was tracking him.

He looked at Chasla. If he could have looked apologetic, he would have.

"This could be it for us, little one," he said.

"It looks like," she said. "But I think we can outmaneuver that slow thing, don't you? We're faster than they are."

"We'll try," Lion said. He pulled several levers beside the wheel. Powerful engines thrummed to life, pushing them along. He touched the communication crystal. "All gunners stand by to strafe the enemy ship."

The Ghost Lion banked around and began pounding the Morgana with gunfire. The shells dented, but did not destroy the armor of the ship, and did not deter the guns from returning fire on them. Lion felt his ship rock with hit after hit along the lower hull. He tried not to think about the people in the engine room who could have died because of this.

"We're over them now," Chasla said.

"Deploy the Shock Anchors," he said.

The Anchors had better purchase--they smashed through the deck of the Morgana, sending wild arcs of energy coruscating through it. Some of the Seketha and the undead Angels in the upper decks were burned to a crisp. Lion waited until the ship's shock coils were drained, and disengaged, coming around for another run.

Darken, he thought. I hope you can do this. I don't know how long we'll be able to stay here.

Darken sent bolt after bolt at Adamov, who shrugged them off. The energy from his blasts washed over his crystal wings.

"Haven't you got anything stronger than that?" Adamov taunted. Darken felt himself weakening even more. He tried to focus past it, tried to keep himself aloft while he tried his final gambit.

"You feel it, don't you?" Adamov asked, smiling wickedly. "You feel me draining your life. That's what it is, you know. I intend to steal it all, halfling. For what you have taken from me, it is the least I can do."

"I haven't . . .stolen anything," Darken said. He felt his spirit, reaching out around him, collecting the energy he needed. He was one with the Spheres now, one with the soul energy that ran through everything in them.

"You have stolen the woman I love," Adamov growled. "You have taken the one thing that gave me purpose. I will take your life in the bargain."

"Take . . .this," Darken spat, pointing his arm at him. "SOUL CALIBER!"

A brilliant column of blue fire surged from his arms, striking Adamov full on. Adamov felt pain unlike any since his rebirth. His crystal wings cracked then shattered under the force. He felt flesh and circuitry melting together, and felt himself falling to the Sphere below.

Darken exhausted the last of the power, and, too weak to stay aloft, fell himself.

Phoenix and Israfel clashed high above the skies, but even Phoenix could tell that against her own power, the best he could hope for was a stalemate.

She tried to kick at the crystal armor of Israfel, and after that didn't work, she tried to crack it with her sword. "What are you?" Phoenix demanded.

Israfel knocked her aside with one of her wing struts.

"I am Israfel, the burning Angel," she said. "I have been given the powers of the Goddess Phoenix. I am the burning sword of justice for my people."

You are completely mad, Phoenix thought. She slashed at her with her sword again. Her blade clanged off of her armor, to no effect. Phoenix flew away from her, trying to think.

She has a fraction of my power, she thought. But I can't get to it. If I could summon it, I could control her. Until then, we're too evenly matched.

She rocketed backwards, speeding faster and faster over the surface. If Phoenix couldn't destroy her, she would at least find out just how power this Israfel really was.

They rocketed over the equator of the Sphere several times, until Phoenix saw something out of the corner of her eye.

Oh no, she thought. Darken's falling . . .!

Alecto tried to fire a lightning bolt at Liandra, but she was too fast. She phased into the shadows, and was upon her. Alecto's body jerked under the impact of her punches, and she felt the wind knocked out of her by Liandra's follow-up kick.

Alecto tried to swipe her legs out from under her with her wings, but Liandra did a perfect flip and landed hard on Alecto's wing with both feet, snapping bones as she did.

Alecto laced both hands together, and caught Liandra in the face with a hammer-blow. Alecto tried to capitalize, but she could barely stand. The wing hurt more than anything, but she was so tired. Charging all that power had taken so much.

She threw a weak punch at Liandra, who sidestepped it, and planted the pint of her elbow in Alecto's spine. She felt her body spasm and she fell to the ground again.

"I take no pleasure in this," Liandra said. "Calm down, and I will stop."

"The hell you will," Alecto said bitterly. "This is for my defeating you the first time, isn't it!"

Alecto tried for a kick. Liandra caught her leg and tried to swipe her with her wing. Alecto backflipped out of it, and landed hard on her ankle, twisting it. She bit her lip and wiped the blood from her face.

"I don't care that you defeated me the first time," Liandra said, circling her. "I'm just not going to let you interfere with what they're doing."

"They owe me!"

"They owe you, yes," Liandra said. "But they owe everyone in these worlds now. They must attend to them all first. Would you rather there was no world for you to return to?"

"My world is gone," Alecto said. She kicked, a high wheel kick. Liandra easily ducked under it. "All I hoped for. My father bred me for a princess' life! The best schools, The best gifts, the best of everything. Now, to find that was all a lie! Why?"

Liandra caught her follow up kick, threw her leg over Alecto's and spun around, punching her hard in the face. She then stepped over, smashing the other heel into Alecto's face. Alecto went spinning to the ground. Liandra held onto her leg.

"Yield," she said. "Or I'll break your leg."

Before either cold say anything, a column of purple chaos fire punched through the upper surface of the planet, separating them. Liandra landed on her feet. Alecto tried to crawl away. She found she couldn't.

Liandra flew over the perfect crater in the Sphere and grabbed Alecto by the hair. She held her other hand, claws extended to her face.

"Now yield," she said. "I mean it."

Alecto brought both fists up into Liandra's stomach. Liandra doubled over in pain. She glanced up to see her fairies' reaction and was shocked, because they were doing something she'd never seen.

They were flashing, strobing. She felt like she couldn't look away--the lights were so captivating. She stood there for--hours? Minutes? Just watching.

Then Liandra's fist met her jaw, and she slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Liandra flexed her fingers. Her fairies stood on her shoulder, cheering silently.

I hope I didn't just kill someone down there, Vertigo thought. She had bought herself a little time, firing her Gryphon Caliber bolt don into the planet. It had slowed her fall down, but not enough. Now she had to make the most of her one shot.

As she passed the edge of the hole, she struck out with her sword. It sank into the side of the hole, held fast, and stopped her fall. It also jerked her shoulder out of place. Vertigo screamed in pain, then, very slowly, tried to find a foothold, then a handhold, climbing very gingerly over the lip of the hole. She dragged her sword up, then laid her dislocated arm against the surface. She jerked the arm back into place in one twitch.

"AAAAAAARGH!" Vertigo cried. It echoed over the cold metal of the Sphere. She felt like she wanted to throw up. She gasped for air, trying to rise, using her sword as a crutch.

"Glad you could make it. And all the way back from the grave, what's more."

Then she heard a familiar laugh behind her. Flanked by what looked like several insects in dark robes was Kirone.

"Now, Vertigo," she said, clapping politely. "It's so nice to see that you know your place at last. On your knees, in front of me. I hope it's comfortable--I intend to make you spend a lot of time down there."

Darken felt Phoenix catch him in her arms. He could barely say anything, but he mumbled thanks to her. Phoenix landed on the far side of the Sphere, and gently lay him down. She hadn't much time to protect him--Israfel was bearing down on them like a burning comet.

My own power won't do anything against Israfel, she thought. If Darken was awake, maybe his Soul Power could stop her. But he's so weak . . .

She looked at him, and laid a hand on his chest. "You won't like this," she said to him. "But I don't see any other way right now. I hope you can forgive me, my beloved."

She began to glow a brilliant color, the color of a burning sun. Darken too began to glow with his blue soul energy. Israfel swooped closer, ready to deliver the final blow.

Adamov fell through the hole, past Vertigo, catching himself on the next floor down. He rose, unsteadily, his servomotors whined with the effort. He looked at the polished metal.

Blood, he thought. Someone is here.

He followed as quietly as he was able. Hiding behind a fallen stanchion, he watched the figures before him. He also reached out with his erosion, trying to taste their life forces. He was in dire need of an infusion--that halfling had very nearly destroyed him. Had he been immune, he might well have.

And I cannot die, Adamov thought. Not when Vertigo is so close.

"Sachiel," Liandra said. She was dragging Alecto's unconscious body along as they talked. "As happy as I am to see you and Leiliel alive, I can't let you go up there."

"He killed my father," Sachiel said sternly. His scythe-sword dragged on the ground. "I'm going to kill him."

"He's agreed to pay for his crimes," Liandra said. "But right now he and Gailion are trying to stop the plan that Sandalphon was part of."

"What plan?"

"Well," Liandra said. "It's like this--"

Adamov took this moment to emerge from the shadows. He walked towards them, slowly now, his eyes full of quiet menace.

"What in the name of Taruga is that?" Leiliel asked.

Adamov didn't answer. He merely raised his hands, ready to drain them of all life. Soon he would take their lives, and soon he would take Vertigo. Let the rest of these beings burn, for all he cared.